Combination air, land, and water plane



April 6 1926.

A. J. HARPSTRITE bomsmmxou AIR, LAND, AND WATER PLANE Filed Nov. 12,1924 4 Sheets-Shah's 1 April 6 1926.

A J. HARPSTRITE 4 COMBTNATION. AIR, LAND,v AND WATER PLANE Filed Nov.12; 1924 4 Sheets-Sheet .2

April 6 1926. 1,579,654

A. J. HARPSTRITE GOMBTNATION AIR, LAND, AND WATER PLANE 7 Filed Nov. 12,1924 -4 Sheets-Sheet 3 60 X; as

April 6 I926; 1,579,654

A. J. HARPSTRITE I dOMBTNATION AIR, LAND, AND WATER PLANE Filed Nov. l2,1924 4 sheets-sheet 4 Patented Apr. 6 1 926, it

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

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- COIBTNATION AIR, LAND, AND WATER PLANE.

7 "Application flled li'ovem ber 12, 1824. Serial No 748,495. I boatbow. Figure 55 To all whom it may concern: Be it known that I, AUGUSTUSSTRITE, resident of Los Angeles, State of California, have invented newand useful Improvements in Combination Air, Land, and lVater Planes, ofwhichthe following is a specification. i I

This invention relates to vehicles and more particularly-to a flyingvessel of the heavier-than-air type.

An object of the invention is to providea craft adapted for flying, forland travel, and for water travel. An object is to provide an aerialvessel having a main supporting plane which is adjustably mounted on anaxistransverse, to'a cabined'hull and which plane lies longitudinally ofthe hull' and head on above the bow of the boat. An

object is to provide a positive means and an auxiliary safety meansforcontrolling the angle of tilt of the plane for ascending-anddescending. I

ing four main groundwheels for permitting the craft to be propelled byits air propeller while aground, and an object is to provide means forcasterin the front wheels to steer the vessel for lan running.

An object is to shroud the front wheels to reduce air resistance whenflying.

An object is to provide a hull having a plane-forming bottom and, whichalso provides, along each side, a separate fuel tank below -an"inne'rbottom.

An object is to provide safety the-various contro s.

generally provide for a reduction of air resistance by construction andarrangement of brakes for the parts to the end that a very high speedmay be obtained in airtravelling.

An ob ect is 'to provide the vessel with a direct-l1 t action propellerto aid the plane to provide control means for throwing this proppllerinto and out of effect.

T e invention-consists of apparatus more particularly described. in thefollowing drawings, wherein,

Figure 1 is a-perspective of, the. craft. Figure 2 is a cross-sectionof-.the prow,

showing the slide operating pinion. Figure;- 3 1s a plan ofthe steeringwheel operating citizen of the United States, andof the controls.

object is to provide an air craft hav And an object is to element inmaking ascent and descent, and

specification referring to the "accompanying device arranged in the 4 isa central, lon itudinal section of the craft. Figure 5 is a .l'ontelevation of the adjusting'slide. Figure 6 is a plan-of elements 0Figure 7 is an elevation of control brake. section on a plane just infront of the axle of the top, main plane. Figure 9 1s a dia-' gram ofthe rudder working bight. Figure 10 shows the craft equipped with a.directlift action propeller, Figure 11 is' a perspective showing scoopplanes to throw air from the head propeller up into the parachute or topplane. Fi res 12 and 13 show in detail'the air propel er.

The craft comprises a boat body having 7 upwardly convergent side walls2 joining 4 asloping top deck 3 having lateral side wings 4 alongthe'corners. These wings are. braced at 5, and have tension lines 6connected to a crossbeam 7 at the bow of the body. The bow has a foredeck 8 inclining up to a central cabin transom 9, windowed fore, aft andlaterally giving clear view for the aviator from a seat 10 in the cabin..A feature of the invention consists of so forming the outer bottom ofthe hull with outwardly ,a-nd downwardly divergent plane faces 11 togive lifting action on air or on water. y 4

, An inner cabin floor 12, from side to side, 5 forms separate tanks 13for carrying separate supplies of liquid fuel, so that-should Q one tankspring a leak, the other has a safety reserve.

On the boat keel His secured a suitable 9o motor M having a rear clutch15 to connect with and drive a shaft 16 having a. propeller 17 to drivethe craft while afloat.

deck hatch 19 provides for ingress and egress while afloat. Atthe frontend of the motor v isaclutch i and drive mechanism 20 for connecting upa shaft 21 mounted in and extending from the .100

bow and carrying an air propeller 22., The propeller has blades mediallysecured to the rear edge of a re-enforcingcylinder 23 havmg a frontknife edge to reduce air resistance. This enables use of a propellerlarge sweep and high pitch for hi h speed/1 without danger of snappingofi the lades. 5

To obtain speed'in air flight and also in-fi;

Figure 8 is a vertical cross- 00 crease safety I provide an elongated,tunnelshaped top, main flying plane of ap: proved structural embodiment,preferably of smooth inside and outside surface, as of aluminum sheets,to reduce air resistance. The plane has a salient, curved nose 26 and isamply provided with transverse beams 27 and skeleton carlines 28 andstringers 29. This plane is disposed longitudinally along and above theboat body and, by virtue of its size, and its arched form, provides amaterial parachute effect in descending. The plane 25 is mounted,rearwardly of its longitudinal center, on an axle 30 journaled inposts'31extending up from the boat.

Positive means are provided for tilting the top plane 25 to vary theangle of incl dence. Also, an auxiliary or safety control means isprovided for use if the former means give way.

The positive means includes a slide 33 slotted at 33 to pass over thepropeller shaft 21 and being slidably mounted in bow stand.

ard 34 which is curved concentric to the axis of the axle 30 as, also,is the slide 33. The

' latter is securely attached to a crossbeam I by a hand Wheel 43. Whilethe Worm and well t-russed up by guy lines 56.

gear may hold the shaft 38, I prefer to employ a brake operative toprevent slipping of the slide 33 after it has been set by the aviatoroperating the wheel 43. Such abrake is shown in Figure 7 as including adrum on which is a turn of cable 51 fast at one end and attached to aspring 52 at the other, which tightens the cable bight to hold the drum.Pressure on a pedal 53 slacks up the cable so that the drum and itsshaft can turn. Strong braces 55 connect the slide 33 to the sides ofthe top plane 25. This'is also The auxiliarv control means includes apair of reins 57 having lines 58 runnine back to a reel 58* on rod 41.This reel may attach to wheel 43 and so pull back'or-let out the reinswhich connect the boat bow and the fore and of the top plane. The reel,if inde endent, may have its own brake device 50% (similar to brake 50).

Direction of flight is'controlled by .a tail rudder 60 pivoted on avertical hinge 61 and having a rope bight 62 led to remote pulleys 63,atopposite sides of the plane and thence to rear pulleys 64, thence downto a drum 65 loose on the cross-rod 41. This drum is turned by a handwheel 66 and held fast by a manually released brake 50".

In addition to providing. for air and water travel by the craft, 1 alsoprovide for la' nd travel and turning movements, utilizing the airpropeller 22 for propulsion. To that end I mount rear ground Wheels 68and frontsteering Wheels 69, which have knuckle arms 7 0 connected by adrag link 71 arranged in a cross-tube 72 in the hull so that water mayfreely enter. into this tube extends a packed steering post 73 having aspool 74 with a few turns of cable 75 leading out and. attached to thesteering link 71. At one point the cable is attached to the spoolso asto prevent slip. The post has at the inner end a removable steeringwheel 76 for operation by the aviator while running on land.

A lever 7 8 controls clutches 15-20 to driven and vice versa.

Safety lines 80 connect the ends of the I main plane and the ends of theboat body to insure a parachute action in any emergency. To reduce headresistance sharp nose shrouds 81 nearly enclose the front running wheels69. y

A central landing wheel 82 is mounted at the bottom end of the prow.

As shown in Figure 10, another feature of the craft consists of a toppropeller 84 having a vertical shaft 85 sliding up and down in a fixed,central tubular bearing 86 projecting nearly to the top of the archedmain plane and being guyed by wires 87 to the oat. The lower end oftheshaft 85 is splined in a hollow shaft 88 having a gear 89 meshing withanothter gear 90 on a sleeve 91 having a clutch 92 for connecting it tothe motor shaft.

Thus the top or lifting propeller can be driven at will with or withoutthe propellers 1722 or either of them. i

I prefer to make the top propeller 84 of disappearing form and thereforeform a-depresslon 25 in the crown of the plane 25 wlnch may be concaveor up curved longitudinally as well as transversely, (Fig. 10). A slot94 in the depression bottom allows the planeto tilt clear of the upright86.

On the shaft 85 is a collar 95 having pins 96 connected to endlesscables 97 fixed to a spool 98 aside of the shaft. This spool is turnedby a gear means and crank 99 thereby raising. the propeller 84 out ofthe recess 25*, to a desired degree, or lowering it.

The combined effort of main plane 25 and propeller 84 is, therefore, tocause a quick take-ofl' when propeller 22 is speeded up. The propeller84 may be used to retard descent in conjunction with the parachuteplane25.

As shown in Figure 11, air-diverting planes 100 may be provided at thebow of the boat body to throw air from the propeller 22 up into the topplane. The planes 100 maybe released at the bottom from the boat andthen hinged out on rods 101 so that for water reserve, they will notcheck speed.

' 84 can be steady when there happens to be 'a'heavy be set with itsring either in front or rear of the blades.

When the craft is afloat the toppropeller run fast enough to keep, theboat sea running.

Ample side wings 103 give lateral stability to .the craft when flying,and the top propeller 84 will be highly assistful. in steadyingboat'when the air is in a pockety condition, or tends to roll the craft.

lVhat isclaimed is:

1. Acombined land, air and Water vessel including a boat body havingfront steering wheels, rear running wheels, means in the body foroperating the steering wheelsfor land travel, fixed side planes alongthe body, a main flying plane 0 concaved under face lying longitudinallyover and along the boat, means for tilting the plane longitudinally tovary the angle of incidence,- and a rudder for aerial flying.

2. A combined land, air and water vessel including a boat body providedwith a including a boat body provided with a versely of the boat, anaerial rudder,

, apinion engaging driven propeller, a longitudinally, extending,'topplane pivoted transversely of the boat, an aerial rudder,a bow rackconnected to the plane and sliding on the boat prow and guided in a pathhaving the plane pivot as its axis, and a control means including apinion engaging the rack to raise and:

lower the bow end of the plane.

3. A combined land, air and watervessel driven propeller, a.longitudinally, extending, tunnel-shaped top plane pivoted transa bowrack connected to the plane andslidingon the boat prow, and a controlmeans including the rack to raise and lower the bow end of the plane anda second and safety, auxiliary plane-control means.

4. A land, air and water vessel including i a boat body with rearrunning and front the boat body,

steering wheels for land use, a longitudinally extending, main flyingplane, arched transversely and having a transverse axle in and a bridlemeans for controlling'the angle of the plane as to the boat.

-5. A land, air and water vessel includingv a boat body with rearrunning and front steering wheels for land use, a longitudinallyextending, main flying plane, arched transversely. and having atransverse axle in the boat body, and a bridle means for controlling theangle of the plane as to the boat and an air rudder lying below andtilting with the plane.

6. A land, air and water vessel including aboat body with rear runningand ,front steering wheels for land use, a longitudinally .said slide.

extending, main flying plane, arched transversely and having atransverse axle in the from opposite sides of the rudder tail to anddown from the axle to the control pit in the boat. y g

7. An aerlal vessel including a boat body having a longitudinallyextending, main supporting planemounted on an axle transversethe boatbody, a prow structure extending upward from the body and being curvedconcentric to the center of the'said axle, a slide fitting and moving upand down in the prow and being attachedto the front end of'the .saidplane, and control means for operating the slide to determine the angleof the plane.

' 8..An aerial vessel'including a boat body having a longitudinallyextending, main supporting plane mounted on an axis transyerse the boatbody, a prow structure. extendmg upward from the body and curvedconcentric to the said axis, a slide .adjustablyv mounted in the prowand including a rack, and a pinion engaging therack and having controlmeans in theboat body, the slide being connected to the front end of theplane to tip it on the axis.

-9. An aerial vessel including, a boat body having a longitudinallyextending, main supporting plane, a transverse axle on the body andcarrying the plane, a prow structure extending upward from the boat bodyand concentric to the axle, a propeller in front of the prow and havingits shaft extending back through the prow into the body, a slotted slidemovable up and down I in the prow, said shaft passing through the slotin the slide, and control means in the body ofthe boat for adjusting theplane by 10. An aerial vessel including a boatbody having alongitudinally extending, main supporting plane pivotedon anaxis'transverse the boat body, a. slide mounted cen-- trally andadjustably in the prow of the boat and connected by a cross arm to thefront end of the plane, rack and pinion means for adjusting the slide,and means extended to the cock-pit of the boat for controlling saidslide.

11. An aerial vessel including a boat body having a longitudinallyvextending, main supporting plane-pivoted on an axis transverse thebody, a slide adjustably mounted in the prow of the body, meansconnecting the slide to the frontend of the plane, man-- ual controlmeans to shift the slide to vary the angle of the plane above the boat,a

power. plant in the boat, a-propeller shaft,

passing through theslide and having a pro peller in front of the prowand being driven by the said plant, and a Water propeller at the sterndriven by the power plant.

12. An aerial vessel including a boat body, a main lifting planelongitudinally dis-' posed above the body and having a transverse axison the body, a tail rudder mounteel in the plane, a head propeller forthe vessel, a slide at the proW of the vessel for ti1ting the plane onits axis, a transverse fixed rod in the boat body, and independentlyoperative means on the said rod for contr0lling the rudder and the saidslide.

13. An aerial vessel including a boat body, a main lifting plane lyingparallel to and above the body and tilting on a transverse axis thereon,positive mechanism for tilting the front end of the plane up or down,and a safety means for controlling the plane in event of failure thesaid mechanism, and including flexible eonnections between the boat andthe front end of the plane, and a hauling-in ineans attached to theconnections to vary the angle of the plane.

14. An air craft having, in combination, a boat with a power plant, amain flying plane, a bow tractor propeller, a shiftable liftingpropeller above the plane, and means for selectively, or concurrently,driving the propeller from the power plant.

15. An air craft having, in combination, a boat- With a power plant, amain flying plane, a bow propeller, lilting propeller above the plane,and means for selectively, or concurrently, driving, the propellers fromthe power plant, and means for raising and lowering the liftingpropeller.

15. An air craft having. in combination, a boat with a power plant, amain. flying plane, a bow propeller, a lilting propeller above theplane, and means for selectively, or concurrently, driving tnepropellers from the power plant, and means for raising and lowering thelifting propeller; the plane having a recess in its top for receivingthe lowered top propeller.

AUGUSTUS J. DTnlR-PSTRITE.

